Lighter



- Aug. 13, 1940. M GABRITSCH 2,211,500

LIGHTER Filed Jan. 10, 1938 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 W 7//\/ GABA /racH I INVENTOR.

ATTORNEYS.

M. GABRITSCH LIGHTER Aug. 13, 1940.

2 Shets-Sheet 2 Filed Jan. 10, 1938 INVENTOR.

ATTORNEYS.

villi! Patented Aug. 13, 1940 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 2 Claims.

This invention aims to supply a. lighter for pipes, cigars, cigarettes and the like, which will be safer in operation than other lighters heretofore provided. The invention aims, further, to

provide a lighter which will operate in a satisfactory way, regardless of position, saving when turned up-side-down.

Another object of the invention is to provide a lighter which will operate in a satisfactory way under widely different temperatures, and whether held steady or in motion, it being possible to use the fuel in the lighter to the last drop, leakage being prevented. Another object of the invention is to provide a lighter which will feed the gas from the bottom of the fuel tank,

the valve being caused to operate with more perfect uniformity so long as there is any fuel left.

A further object of the invention is to provide novel means for filtering or purifying the fuel. The invention aims, further, to provide a lighter which will be economical in operation, both as to the flints or fuel. Another object of the invention is to supply novel means under the control of an operator whereby an additional supply of fuel may be furnished at any time. The invention has as another object, the provision of a lighter which will operate on a given amount offuel longer than lighters hereto-fore provided. It is contemplated, also, to supply a lighter, which will operate with marked precision and accuracy, under all conditions.

It is within the province of the disclosure to improve generally and to enhance the utility of devices of that type to which the present inven tion appertains.

With the above and other objects in view, which will appear as the description proceeds, the invention resides in the combination and arrangement of parts and in the details of construction hereinafter described and claimed, it being understood that changes in the precise embodiment of the invention herein disclosed, may be made within the scope of whatis claimed, without departing from the spirit of the invention.

certain parts 'of one of the valve mechanisms in separated relation;

Fig. 7 is a perspective showing in separated relation, another of the valve mechanisms and parts associated with it;

Fig. 8 is a cross section on the line 88 of Fig.

Fig. 9 is an elevation showing the friction wheel and associated parts;

Fig. 10 is a perspective view illustrating part of the flint feed; v

Fig. 11 is a plan of the operating member or 1:001 which may be used with the device.

In carrying out the invention, there is provided a casing I, of any desired shape or contour, including a bottom 2 and a top 3, the casing being divided by a longitudinal partition 4 into a wick compartment 5 and a fuel compartment 6, the partition having a transverse and downwardly extended table 1 forming an extension 8 of the wick compartment 5. A refueling plug 9 is threadedintothe bottom 2. The casingl has an inwardly extended ofi'set III in which a follower II operates, under the impulse of a compression spring I2, to actuate an arm I4, pivoted at IE to the casing I, and to cause a snuifer I6 at the free end of the arm I4 to cooperate with a wick tube I1 removably threaded into the top 3 of the casing I and constructed as desired. The

arm I4 has a curved intermediate portion I8, clearing and extending over operating wheels I9 and a friction wheel 20, supported for rotation as shown at 2I on standards 22 carried by the top 3. The operating wheels l9 and the friction wheel may be of the laterally separable, takedown construction depicted in Fig. 9. The arm I4 can be turned back to the position of Fig. 1,

when the device is in use as a lighter.

A flint tube 23 is located in the wick compartment 5 and is connected to the bottom 2 and the top 3 of the casing I, and has an annular flange 24, which prevents the fuel from reaching the friction wheel 20 during the filling operation.

- Any desired number of flints 25 are slidably mounted in the flint tube 23, the' uppermost flint being pressed against the friction wheel 20 by a follower 26, urged upwardly by a compression spring 21 in the flint tube. An adjusting wheel 28 is located in a recess in the bottom of the easing I, and in the hub of the wheel is received against rotation, a stem 29, extended within the spring 21 and having a fluted side 34' which connects the rod to the adjusting wheel 28 for rotation therewith, and also connects to the rod, in the same manner, a bushing 30, which is threaded at 3| into the flint tube 23, but by rotating the rod 26 by way of the wheel 28, the rod and the bushing 30 will be rotated, the bushing moving lengthwise of the flint tube, in engagement with an abutment 33 at the lower end of the spring. because the bushing is threaded at 3| into the flint tube, the spring 21 thus being put under adjusted pressure, to advance the flints 25.

A supporting plug 35 is threaded at 42 into a recess in the bottom 2 of the casing I, and in it is held, by a threaded ring 36, a. packing 31 wherein is journaled a rotatable member 38, the head of which is let into the head of the supporting plug 35. The rotatable member 38 has a squared bore 39. The head of the supporting plug 35 has an annular scale 40, with which is adapted to cooperate a screw driver kerf 4| in the head of the rotatable member 31 to indicate how much the rotatable member has been turned.

A flanged tube 43, which may be called an intermediate tube is secured in the table 1 and the body of the tube, as well as its flanges, are sup-'- plied with openings 44. A wick 45, conveniently referred to as a second wick, is wrapped at its lower end around the tube 43 and is extended through some of the openings 44, the upper end of the second wick and any other desired parts thereof being extended within the tube 43. A hood 46 is secured in the table 1, about the tube 43 and has openings 49 in its side.

A wick 48, conveniently referred to as a first wick, is looped about the hood 46 and is held on horizontal and vertical portions of the table 1 by keepers 41 and extends downwardly to the bottom of the casing 3, the first wick 48 serving to bring up fuel from the bottom of the casing and to deliver it through the openings 49 of the hood, it being possible, in this way, to use up the fuel, almost to the last drop.

Into the tube 43 is threaded at i a tubular wick carrier 50, the wick carrier having a disklike valve head 52 provided on its upper surface with a yieldable washer 53. The wick carrier 50 encloses a wick 54, conveniently referred to as a third wick, is accessible through an opening 11 and a slot 89 in the side of the wick carrier and has a depending squared stem 55 received andheld in the squared bore 39 of the rotatable member 38. Into the table 7 is threaded a tubular flared nipple 56 having openings 51. The nipple 56 has an upstanding boss 58 with a passage therethrough.

Into the nipple 56 is threaded a tubular foot 59 containing a slidable valve 60, pressed downwardly on the boss 56 by a spring 6|. The foot 59 is connected by a securing element 62 with a stem 63 having a squared end 64 received in the correspondingly shaped bore 65 of a sleeve 66 receiving the end of a shaft 67 and secured thereto as shown at 68. A washer 69 is held between the ends of the sleeve 66 and the end of a bushing threaded into the top 3 of the casing I, a retainer 1| holding a packing 12 in the bushing 10, the shaft passing through the packing. A disk 73 is secured to the upper end of the shaft 61 and is seated in a recess in the top of the casing I.

A main wick 14 extends upwardly through the wick tube l1 and is connected at to a secondary wick 16 extended downwardly into the extension 8 of the wick chamber 5 and about the upper end of the supporting plug 35.

The valve mechanism indicated sufficiently by the rod 63, and hereinafter designated by that numeral, is used after the fuel has been used up completely in every part of the device, and immediately after the fuel compartment 6 has been refilled. Under such circumstances, if the valve mechanism 63 is opened there is a free and ready flow to the wick l6, and such a flow is desirable if the device is completely dry. After the wick 16 is well saturated, the supply of fuel to the wick 16 should be out down, in the interest of economy, and in the interest of safety as well. The economical operation of the device will be obvious, especially after the description of the operation of the parts shown in Fig. 7 is set forth. As to the safety feature, no more need be said other than that if the device is put into a vest pocket, for instance, with the left hand side of the device (Fig. 5) down, there will be a tendency toward external flooding, by way of the Wick 16-14, if the valve mechanism 63 is left open, and experience has shown that this flooding cannot be entirely done away with by shutting the snuffer 16 down on the end of the wick 14. Therefore the valve mechanism 63 is closed after it has accomplished its purpose; to wit, delivering a liberal supply of fuel to the wick compartment 5 and to the wick 16 in a new and perfectly dry lighter, or in a lighter which approaches dryness to such a degree that a liberal supply of fuel to the compartment 5 and to the wick 16 is required.

The valve mechanism 63 having been closed, the wick 16 gets an economically reduced but adequate and safe supply of fuel through instrumentalities hereinafter described. Disregarding those instrumentalities for the moment, it will be noted that if the valve mechanism 63 is closed, and that if the fuel in the compartment 6 is used down to a level below the table 1, the only way to get fuel into the chamber below the table 1 is to open the valve mechanism 63 and shake the article until some of the fuel that is in the compartment 6, below the level of the table I, enters the nipple 56 and passes thence to the chamber below the table I. At that, it is practically impossible to use up the fuel entirely, and a fuel-tag remains in the compartment 6.

The instrumentalities above referred to accomplish at least two-ends. First, they avoid a dead and useless tag end of fuel in the compartment 6. Second, they furnish, automatically but under the governance of an operator, to the wick 16, a supply of fuel which can be reduced to a minimum, in the interest of economy and in the interest of safety as well.

If there is plenty of fuel in the compartment 6, the fuel can enter the hood 46 by Way of the openings 49, saturate the wick 45, and pass from the wick 45 to the wick 54. The fuel from the wick 54 may pass outwardly through the opening 11 in the wick carrier 50 and accumulate between the wick carrier 50 and the tube 43, but whether or not the fuel so accumulates, the fuel flows slowly through the restricted slot 80 in the wick carrier 50, downwardly upon the washer 53, and thence on to the wick 16. The flow of fuel may be regulated by advancing or retracting the wick carrier 50, to adjust the pressure with which the washer 53 bears against the flange at the lower end of the tube 43. Thus it will be seen that the fuel supply can be regulated and fixed, cutting down the flow to what is actually needed. A fineness of adjustment, not possible by manipulating the valve mechanism of Fig. '7, is attained. The valve mechanism of Fig. 7, having been once set, need not be moved, and the valve mechanism 63 is operated only when the device is dry or nearly so.

When the fuel in the compartment 6 falls below the level of the table 1, the fuel can be used up, almost to the last drop, because it is taken up by the wick 48, delivered to the wick' through the holes 49 of the hood 46 and delivered by the wick 45 to the wick 54, from which the fuel follows the path hereinbefore described, including the slot 80 in the wick carrier 50.

In order that the structure claimed may be understood readily, it may be observed that it comprises a casing I having a partition 4 forming a wick compartment 5 and a fuel tank 6, the wick compartment 5 having a lateral extension 8 prolonged into the fuel tank 6 and located at the bottom of the casing l. The hood 46 is mounted on the top of the extension 8 and has an opening 49 for the entrance of fuel from the tank 6 when the level of the fuel is above the top of the extension 8. The first wick 48 leads from the bottom of the tank 6 to the opening 49 and constitutes means for conveying fuel to the opening 49 when the fuel level is below the top of the extension 8. An intermediate tube 43 is located in the hood 46. The second wick 45 is located between the intermediate tube 43 and the hood 46, the second wick 45 entering the intermediate tube 43 and being in communication with the first wick 48, by way of the opening 49. The wick tube 50 is threaded'for adjustment into the intermediate tube 43, the wick tube 50 having a slot in its side wall, leading to the extension 8. The third wick 54 in the wick tube 50 receives fuel from the second wick 45. The valve 5352 on the wick tube 50 is located in the extension 8, the valve 53--52 controlling the slot 89 when the wick tube 50 is rotated. The member 38 constitutes means for rotating the wick tube 50' from without the casing I.

All rotatable parts may be provided with slots 18 or with spanner openings 19, as occasion may require, and for the manipulation of rotatable parts there may be supplied the key 8| of Fig. 11, which need not be described, because its function is obvious and because a key or tool cannot be covered in the same application with a lighter of the class described.

- Having thus described the invention, what is claimed is:

1. In a lighter of the class described, a casing having a partition forming a wick compartment and a fuel tank, the wick compartment having a lateral extension prolonged into the fuel tank and located at the bottom of the casing, a hood mounted on the top of the extension and having an opening for 'the entrance of fuel from the tank when the level of the fuel is above the top of the extension, a first wick leading from the bottom of the tank to the opening and constituting means for conveying fuel to the opening when the fuel level is below the top of the extension, an intermediate tube in the hood, a second wick between the intermediate tube and the hood, the secondwick entering the intermediate tube and being'in communication with the first wick, by way of the opening, a wick tube threaded for adjustment into the intermediate tube, the wick tube having a slot in its side wall, leading to the extension, a third wick in the wick tube and receiving fuel from the second wick, a valve on the wick tube and located in the extension, the valve controlling the slot when the wick tube is rotated, and means for rotating the wick tube from without the casing.

2. A lighter of the class described, constructed as set forth in claim 1, in combination with valve means under the control of an operator and accessible from without the casing and cooperating with the extension to admit fuel from the tank into the extension, when the valve means is opened, more rapidly than the fuel can find its way from the tank into the casing by way of the slot.

MARTIN GABRITSCH. 

